The Five Marauders
by PheonixTears1001
Summary: Drop her in, and she explodes like a bomb. Enter Claire Brown, an odd girl with a sarcastic and insulting conscience and a friendly demeanor. With overloads of sarcasm,she's here to rock the world. But what happened to her? Did she just- disappear? The third chapter gets longer, I swear. Review for a hundred more words on the next chapter! I don't know why its T... Remus, maybe?
1. Claire Brown

Chapter 1: James Potter

Cia turned over into her pillow, groaning, angry at her alarm for the inconvenient time it had woke her up. Then her hand fumbled on the nightdresser, trying to find the source of the beeping. It was frutal. She would have to get up. Yet another groan escaped her lips. She sat up, throwing the covers off her legs, and slammed her hand on the off button. Sweet relief. She rubbed the sleep out of her eyes.

Her eyes. Dark blue, then blue, flecked with green, then hazel.

She blinked, and dragged herself out of bed. Then she started.

TODAY WAS AUGUST 29!

She jumped and ran to her closet. She grabbed some jeans and a green top, slid them on, and ran out of her room, bare feet hitting the cold wood. In the bathroom, she dragged a hairbrush through her blonde-brown hair, pulled it into a ponytail. Grinning at herself in the mirror, she ran out of there and slid down the banister to breakfast.

LCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCL

Cia stepped into the floo, her cloak draping around her legs.

She closed her eyes, and dropped the floo powder.

"Diagon Alley!"

There was a whirl, and then Cia tumbled out of the fireplace in a shop. She lay there and laughed, happy to be at Diagon Alley at last.

A boy heard her and walked over. She blushed as he pulled her up by her hand. She dusted herself off, then looked at the boy. He had dark, ruffled hair and brown eyes contained behind circular glasses. She smiled at him, and he grinned back at her.

"Hi. I'm Cia Brown."

"Hey. I'm James Potter."

"Nice to meet you James. And, do you know where (she blushed) Madame Malkin's is? I'm-muggleborn, you see."

He didn't comment, but told her the way.

"Seeya 'round, Brown." And he walked off.

LCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCL

Cia's mother and father came out of the floo seconds later, and she glanced at James once more before walking determinedly out of the shop.

When Cia entered the shop, she smiled at the scent of fabric. It reminded her of home, and one of her favorite hobbies.

Madame Malkin walked over to them.

"Hello, I'm Madame Malkin. You are here for robes, I presume?"

"Yes Madame" said Cia, and Madame Malkin looked at her queerly, but did not say anything.

LCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCL

Butterflies were jumping in Cia's stomach as they walked into the last shop. Ollivander's.

She took a deep breath, but there was still that feeling in her stomach.

_What if they reject me? What if I can't be a witch?_

As she walked up to the counter, she felt a sudden rush of confidence. She watched as her parents waved at her and left. Then she watched as Ollivander came around the corner.

**A/N: Thanks for reading! For now I post a new chap every six reviews…so …REVIEW! And the next chap will be looooooooooooooong. Promise.**


	2. A Special Wand

_Last time on The Five Marauders: Muggleborn Cia Brown runs into James Potter, goes to Madame Malkin's, and is now in Ollivander's shop, watching him come to meet her._

Chapter 2: A Special Wand

His hair was streaked with grey and white, but the young brown underneath revealed that he was not quite yet so old that he could not still be competent.

He was a great wizard; Cia could tell from his wise eyes, and even being around him, she could feel the raw energy enveloping him. It was as if he had dunked himself in ENERGY.

He walked up to her, and gave her an interesting smile. Something in his eyes looked…a tad… confused, and maybe a trace scared.

_Scared of me?_ Cia wondered. _I'm nothing interesting. I'm a muggleborn._

But soon after that thought she dismissed the notion entirely, not wanting to be suspicious of the owner of the most important shop in Diagon Alley.

He greeted her. "Hello, miss…?"

"Claire, Claire Brown. I prefer Cia, though."

"I see, Claire. You are here for a wand, I presume?" He had entirely dismissed her request, and that annoyed Cia.

_Well, I'm not here for a horse!_

He nodded at her, as if reading her thoughts (which she would not put past him), and whipped out a measuring tape, which started measuring her, whipping around her slim body.

_Why do they need to know the diameter of my elbow?_

However, the display of magic fascinated her, and she allowed her eyes to observe the spectacle that was currently measuring the circumference of her wrist.

When it had finished, it fell to the floor, and rolled itself into a tight spiral with a snap.

She looked up again, and saw Ollivander stumbling towards his desk with an enormous pile of boxes in his arms. They looked to be too much for the man, because he was dropping a trail of boxes in his wake.

He put them down, rather, dropped them down, on a semi-clear section of his messy desk. Then he strode off behind the shelves in the back of his cluttered shop again. Cia huffed, and pulled up one of the dusty, mothbitten chairs behind her. She sank into its cobwebby midst and let out a deep breath she didn't know that she was holding.

Normally, Cia would be on the opposite side of the shop from this disgusting "chair", if you could call it that, but Cia's mind was so full from what had happened so far today. She had never seen this much magic in her life. The magic seemed to be in the air of the whole place, the sustenance the wizards and witches breathed in, pumping magic into their hearts, to their blood. The whole vicinity was wrapped in the enfolding blanket of magic, but it was warm, comfortable, nice, not suffocating.

Ollivander came back around the corner, disturbing her thoughts. Cia saw that he was holding a long, ivory box with gold filigree around the edges. He looked very insecure and unsure about the item in question, and was shifting it restlessly from one hand to the other, having neither one hold it for long.

Something about the box, or perhaps what it contained, scared the man, that was for sure. Cia wondered what it could possibly be.

He set it down behind and as far away as he could from the pile he had brought in earlier, and then looked up, looking slightly surprised to see a person there. Whatever was on his mind was certainly disturbing him greatly. Or maybe his old age was catching up to him. Cia snorted. Ollivander looked scared. Again. Scared…of her snort? Cia wondered, laughing internally.

He watched her carefully as he handed her the top box on the pile.

"Elm wood, ten inches, core: unicorn hair, springy"

She opened the box cautiously to see a beautiful, polished wand. She lifted it out of the box. Intuitively, she waved it.

The window behind her shattered, spraying shards of glass into the shop and onto the street. Cia had to admit that she was pleased to hear several screams.

_Sadist,_her conscience told her. She laughed at it.

Ollivander seemed dazed for a minute, then snatched another wand from the stack, and grabbed the one she was holding, which apparently wasn't gonna be the one.

He shoved the box towards her. She accepted it and opened it.

Cia took it out. It was greenish, a very ugly color for a wand in her opinion.

"Oak, fourteen inches, core: Dragon heartstring, stiff" she heard the nutter mutter.

Cia waved it. The shop started to tremble. Cia dropped the wand, and it exploded. The shaking stopped. But…wands weren't supposed to explode…she had thought.

Ollivander looked absolutely terrified, and now he was muttering incoherent words to himself.

Gracious, it must be her freaking the guy out.

Ollivander suddenly gave a scream of anger and frustration, and shoved the mass of boxes to the floor, leaving only the white one with the gold.

"No, she's too powerful. Come at last. Can't stop it all… have to, dangerous, monstrous, oh, why me, poor me…" He was shuddering and shivering and whispering to himself. Cia was very annoyed at him.

"Oh, for heaven's sake, pull yourself together, Mr. Ollivander."

He looked up at her.

She was really sick of him looking at her like she was going to end all life as we know it.

"I'm just a muggleborn, Okay? I'm nothing special."

"B-but you are…" he trailed off, and then took a deep breath. With shaking fingers, he reached for the last box standing on his desk.

"This wand… I don't know"

_IS HE INCAPABLE OF COMPLETE SENTENCES_?! Cia thought angrily. _I JUST WANT A WAND! AND I'VE BEEN_ _HERE FOR WAAAAY TO LONG!_

He opened the box and handed her a flexible, white, smooth and shiny wand.

"Pine tree heart, thirteen inches, core: phoenix feather, flexible" Ollivander whispered, looking at the wand in admiration, horror, and apprehension.

She waved it, and a tingling, warm sensation spread up her arm and down to her feet. And then, the interior of Ollivander's shop began to shimmer and twinkle, turning a pale goldish color.

After a few seconds, the golden magic disappeared, but the interior of Ollivander's shop looked completely different. It looked brand new, and there was not a trace of dust to be seen.

Now people with allergies wouldn't die of asthma in here.

The shop had a fresh coat of paint on the walls, and the furniture was now in pristine condition. The pile of wands that had been shoved off the desk was gone, presumably put in their proper places.

Cia gripped the wand, pleased with her magic.

Ollivander, instead of looking pleased, looked horrified.

"GET OUT!" he bellowed, "OUT! NEVER COME BACK!" "Oh, this is my entire fault, my fault" he moaned.

"But, Mr. Ollivander, what about what I owe you…"

"GET OUT OF MY SHOP! NOW!"

Cia ran out of the now most beautiful shop in Diagon Alley, wondering what she had ever done to deserve his wrath.

She ran away from the shop, wishing that Ollivander had treated her like a normal person with magic, not a twisted, terrifying beast.

**A/N: Voila! A very long chapter, in my opinion, though you may not agree….**

**All of you reading this, and saying in your brains: "THIS IS AWESOME!" "This is good." "This could use some work, because of.." "This is horrible because…"**

**Then review. When I see a review my day has become sooooo much brighter. A few seconds for you, infinity of happiness to me.**

**So if ya can, help a poor girl like me to have a happy day.**

**And virtual hugs to: Wilhelm Wigworthy, Moony1972. Your support is very much appreciated! THANKS FOR BEING MY REVIEWERS!**

**I might not update for a bit, so don't freak out. K? K.**

**Pheonix**


	3. Remus Lupin

Chapter 3: Remus Lupin

Cia was running, also looking at her feet while she ran, watching the cobblestones turn into a blur of gray beneath her. And, as nature is so cruel and the chance of running into someone is so great when you are not looking where you are going, Cia ran into somebody. Alas, Cia fell over onto the person.

She looked at who she had run into. Well, a more accurate description would be fallen into. He looked more surprised than she did. Probably he hadn't been run into a bunch of times.

Now they were both on the ground, because as she had _fallen_ into him, they had both collapsed. Cia was blushing furiously. She scrambled off him. They stood up, and she took that time to look at his face. It was just as red as hers- but, his face was also covered with scars. Well, not _covered_. But the upper percentage of his face was marred with scratches that had long since healed but had left their marks.

The scars that stood out the most were four long ones that went from the upper right corner of his forehead to the lower left part of his chin. It looked like a wild animal had scratched him, hard. Cia didn't even want to imagine what that would've been like to feel, or how much his mum would've cried. Her mom would probably not be sobbing, but she definitely would have been shocked and devastated-not to mention worried.

The boy reddened even more at her gaze and looked down. Cia felt guilty for staring.

"Hi. What's your name?" she asked gently.

"Remus, Remus Lupin…"

"Hello, Remus. I'm Cia. Brown."

"Hi Cia."

Remus's voice was frail, as if a strong wind might blow it away.

Just then another voice interrupted as Cia was about to start a conversation.

"Oh, Remus, that's my parents. Bye."

Remus waved, but she was already around the corner.

LCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCL

"Platform Nine and Three Quarters. Nine and Three Quarters. Platform- Bloody Hell!"  
A boy, whom Cia recognized as James Potter, ran by her, his cart shaking and rattling as its contents went on a joyride.  
Cia brightened, however, when she heard that he knew how to get to this entrance to this platform. Being a muggleborn, she had no idea where the platform was located, and her parents were supposedly already there, although Cia couldn't help but wonder how.  
She ran after him, her own cart making a sound not dissimiliar to his.  
Cia watched as he paused between the pillars of Platform 9 and 10, and glanced sideways both right and left.  
Then, to her intense amazement and wonder, he ran into the pillar of Platform 10. She squeezed her eyes shut as he 'collided' with the pillar. When she heard nothing, she laughed, her heart swelling with pure relief.  
_It didn't throw him out, so why me?_  
She stared at the seemingly solid tower of bricks ascending into the rafters, summoning her courage for what she was about to do. She had no real desire to run into Platform 10's barrier, because it would look extremely stupid if she failed, not to mention that it would be mortifying. She had always hated making a show of herself or attracting attention to herself outside of the circle of people that she knew fairly well.  
Se glanced at the clock, and her heart stopped.  
She had thirty seconds to board the Hogwarts Express, before it left without her.  
She ran towards the barrier, all fears forgotten in her race against time.

LCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCL

Cia felt the train jolt forwards and she grabbed the door to a compartment. Yes, she had made it (barely), but now she was having trouble getting herself situated for the train ride. She couldn't stand in the train's hallway until they got to Hogwarts, that was just not a good idea.  
She waited until the train was moving at a steady enough speed to walk, all the while clutching to the door of the compartment, and then started walking down the aisle, dragging her luggage behind her.  
It was slow going, and she felt unbalanced.  
She glanced into each compartment as she stumbled by. They all seemed to be occupied, and Cia did not want to sit by people who she barely knew-or most likely, didn't know at all.  
Cia walked all the faster as she saw a girl and a boy snogging. That was not something that she needed to see on her first day at Hogwarts.  
_You'll be seeing a lot of that sort of stuff, probably. Best get used to it._  
Cia shuddered at that thought. She didn't like watching people snogging or hugging eachother near her, it made her feel like she was intruding and she had no idea what to do with herself when these moments seemed to arise.  
Cia neared the end of the train. She looked quickly into one of the last compartments. It was Remus Lupin! She smiled in relief- at least it was somebody that she knew, if only slightly.  
She knocked on the door gently. Remus was deep in a book, and she didn't want to scare him. She had an odd tendency to scare people by making loud noises.  
Remus glanced up, and recognition flickered across his face. He carefully turned the book over to preserve his page, and stood up to open the door.  
"Do you need somewhere to sit?"  
"Yes, please, Remus. All the other compartments are full..."  
She entered and heaved her baggage above their heads, next to his. Then she sat down across from Lupin.  
He looked at her for a minute, as if deciding whether or not to say something, and then must have decided not to, as he flipped open his book and began to read again.  
She got a closer look at what he was reading, and her eyebrows scrunched up in confusion.  
"Year 2 Level, Remus? I thought you were only first year."  
Remus paled slightly but answered quickly.  
"M..my mom and dad didn't think I would come, so..so I studied myself and got ahead."  
Cia nodded, impressed. She hadn't even cracked her books open yet. Then she turned to the window, watching as the scenery outside was yanked by her line of vision in a colorful blur.

The Lupin and the Brown sat in silence for the next half an hour. The only sound that could be heard was a frequent rustle of paper as Remus turned the page. Cia sat absolutely silent. One might have thought that she had fallen asleep with her eyes open, but really she was just thinking. About magic. About how Minerva McGonagall had visited their house on her eleventh birthday with the news that she was a witch. And most importantly, how it was a real and not just a joke. That was amazing.  
The compartment door chose that moment to slide open, giving a small squeak. Cia and Remus both jumped slightly at the sudden sound, and spun to face it.  
In the doorway was yet again James Potter, but there was a different boy at his side, who looked elegant, handsome, and slightly nervous.  
James's face turned slightly red at the sight of both a boy and girl in a compartment.  
"We..weren't interrupting anything going on between you two, right?" he asked nervously. The elegant one snorted.  
Remus and Cia blushed.  
"No!" Cia squeaked, mortified, "we're only first years!"  
"Doesn't really mean anything.." muttered James. Then, "Can we sit here? We left our other compartment to find more adventure after Evans and Snivelly left."  
"Uh, I guess it's fine with me. Remus...?"  
Remus shrugged.  
James made a great show of bowing to Cia as he and the other boy came into the compartment.  
"Thank you a thousand times over, kind mademoiselle."

**A\N: This chapter is dedicated to Moony1972, who helped me with this chapter immensely and made my life easier...  
And a reply to a certain Guest from a few chapters ago: I have nothing against Hufflepuff. I value its qualities, but it is looked down upon, which, although it is sad, I drew up on.  
Review if you like the story!Review if you hate the story!**


	4. The Sorting

Chapter Four

'_Ow crazy ow crazy ow-'_

"OW!"

James snorted loudly and boisterously and ran a hand through his nest of black hair, yet again. "I told you so."

Cia's eyes narrowed, but she brushed his comment off with a nervous laugh that sounded quite like a deranged and furious mouse.

'_You have never heard a deranged and furious mouse, Cia'_ her conscience helpfully reminded her.

"I had to try, didn't I? But, fine, you were right, whatever." Cia mentally shot daggers at the huge and fluff-filled head of one James Potter.

Sirius glanced over at her. "Are you really admitting defeat to a lesser being, Brown?"

"Oi, I am not a lesser being!" James looked rather insulted, Sirius raised a sculpted eyebrow and Cia had to stifle a laugh. She had an odd sense of humor that was for sure. It was a little bit crazy that she was this sarcastic.

"I bet I could do it" Sirius bragged, and reached for the scarlet package that Cia knew, from experience, held imminent death to all poor taste buds.

'_I bet you couldn't, Black'_ she thought, but only gave him a challenging smile on the outside.

Sirius ripped the package open, exposing three brilliantly red, thumbnail sized candies. He smirked at Cia and popped all three into his mouth. Cia winced.

'_My condolences'_

Sure enough, seconds later, a howl broke loose that was heard throughout the whole train.

Remus winced. "You are the loudest being I have ever met."

Unfortunately, the first thing he had said directly to either James or Sirius so far on the entire train ride was drowned out by Sirius rushing out of the compartment and slamming the door so hard that the glass rattled.

James peered out the compartment door window. "Poor idiot."

Cia tried to raise an eyebrow at him, attempting to mimic Sirius and his eyebrow movements, and failed miserably.

James turned to Remus.

"So, what house will you be going to? I am so going to Gryffindor, where dwell the chivalrous, and the daring ones." James slashed an imaginary sword through the air, almost hitting Cia in the head, but he took no notice.

Remus shrugged.

James's mouth opened again.

"Can you imagine getting sorted into Slytherin? They are like a den of-snakes! No offense to mum, of course" he added as an afterthought.

'_Oh, bravo, James, a den of snakes. Your intelligence has reached heretofore unknown levels'_

Remus spoke. "I think that Slytherin is just discriminated against because it has had some bad moments."

James looked at him incredulously.

"SOME bad wizards? Lupin, every dark wizard ever has come from Slytherin! It's fact! Even Mum said that!"

"But is your mum a dark-"

Remus stopped, blushing, and started gazing out the window.

Cia looked at him. Was he really shy to share his own opinion about darkness?

"Eh. What house do you think you'll be in, Brown?"

"Well, not Ravenclaw, that's for sure" Cia said, and James cracked a smile. "Uh, I guess I have some ambition, but xnay on the unningcay (here James looked really confused), and I try to be loyal and stuff, but sometimes it doesn't work out so well because people aren't loyal to me too much. I think that might be a bad thing… Throw hardworking out the window, too, so no Hufflepuff. Gryffindor… um, I can be occasionally brave and daring, but I really am not all that chivalrous. Er, so either Slytherin or Gryffindor."

"Total opposites for personality, Cia. Alrighty then! Well, do you know where Sirius might be off to? It cannot possibly take him so long to find something to drink. Or maybe he went to the prefects and asked for a nice, cold, Aguamenti right down his gullet. Ah, the possibilities."

Cia snorted softly and then almost immediately gave a mental fond headshake at herself. She really needed to work on her humor if Sirius choking on a spray of water that probably shot out from wand tip at the speed of a high powered hose was amusing to her.

A knock at the compartment door sounded.

James head shot up as it opened, and there was a smiling girl standing there, dressed in shiny grey robes. She had short black hair and bronze skin, and her eyes were currently scanning the compartment rapidly.

"Hello, I'm Allayna Cauvery. Have you seen Sirius Black?" Her face was pleasant as she said this, but her voice carried a deeper, darker meaning.

'_That cannot be good for Black'_ Cia thought smugly.

"Er, no, can't say I have. Has he, er, offended you?" said James, who had heard her tone too.

'_Good to know he has some brain cells at all, if tiny' _Cia remarked to herself.

The girl's petite stature straightened in righteous indignation. Her eyes blazed with fury.

"I would say so! That bumbling idiot came into our compartment demanding to take Maisie's butterbeer! He had the NERVE to take it out of her hands and chug it all down! And now poor Maisie has nothing left to EAT OR DRINK until the BLOODY FEAST!"

And she stormed out of the compartment, and for the second time that blessed day, the poor compartment door shook with a ferocious slam.

LCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCL

"They are ready for you now" said Professor McGonagall, and the doors to the Great Hall swung open at her words, on cue, as if they had spent hours rehearsing.

And Cia's silly little brain immediately gave her an image of the doors rehearsing. She shoved it away, slapping her imagination mentally.

In the hall, thousands of sparkling eyes turned towards them. Cia tried to stand a little taller.

And then, silence. All of the eyes turned away from the first years and to the hat sitting on a stool. Cia shivered and wondered how many children had had headlice and used that hat. She had had headlice once. But surely, she tried to reassure herself, magic would take care of that sort of thing. The headmaster wouldn't totally disregard hygiene, would he?

She looked up at the headmaster. Twinkly blue eyes, neon pink robes with tiny monkey faces on them, and a huge hat that looked like a mushroom.

Maybe he would disregard hygiene, after all.

The hat opened its mouth.

Cia did a double take and checked again to be certain.

Yep. A mouth.

"When I was a hat, new and clean,

There were four, who had quite the dream.

They wished to build a wonderful school,

And together they their knowledge did pool.

Rowena craved for children with smarts,

Salazar yearned for them to learn all the arts,

Helga cried for equality,

Godric wished them daring to be.

They built these four houses,

Then they enchanted me-

And I sit here and sort, as I do now,

Come here, I shall sort thou.

I promise I'll put you

Where you'll fit best,

Just come sit down,

And I'll do the rest!"

Massive cheering erupted from around the first years, and then it was all a deadly quiet as McGonagall let loose an end of a scroll that fell down the steps that led to the Head Table, and unraveled, coming to rest at a boy's feet. The boy shuffled to the side, away from the scroll.

McGonagall cleared her throat.

"Black, Sirius!"

Sirius emerged from a small cluster of other first years and walked smoothly up the steps, picking the hat up gracefully and sitting it on his head with an arrogant smirk plastered to his face.

Silence.

Sirius's face looked afraid for a split-second, but then it was washed away, replaced by confidence.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

McGonagall blinked, then gave a small nod to Sirius as a grin spread across his face like cream cheese on a bagel.

Oh no. That was making Cia hungry for a bagel.

'_Shut Up, Brain!' _

"Brinnings, Maise!"

A girl with green hair and a wide smile splashed with freckles ran up to the stool and shoved the hat on her head, holding both sides of the brim firmly to her ears with a determined look on her face.

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

Cia was shaking. Somehow, she knew that-

"Claire Brown!"

Cia gulped and headed up to the stool, sitting down and watching as the Great Hall disappeared, being replaced by a brown cloth that seemed to shield her from thousands of brilliant, piercing eyes. She relaxed, noticeably. She had a _deathly_ fear of being in front of people, live.

'_I see, Claire. What an interesting mind you have. And quite hard to decipher, also. You have a bit of every house- yes, even Ravenclaw. Yes, you have ambition, to become something great, and also occasionally cunning. Hmm- Hufflepuff is out. You are not particularly hardworking, and-well, you do need truly loyal friends, but it is my shame to say that Hufflepuff is looked down upon- and-no! That would certainly not suit you. _

'_Not Slytherin! I mean, I know it might fit, but people there are looked down upon too, because of their darkness' (and I don't want to disappoint anybody) _Cia added mentally, horrified when the hat heard and chuckled.

'_Well then. Against my better judgement, you have nerve, much of it, Miss Brown. So it will be "_GRYFFINDOR!"

Cheering erupted from three house tables. The Slytherin's were either glaring at her nastily or ignoring her.

She walked as fast as she could to the Gryffindor table, not so fast as to draw attention to herself, because she really HATED being in public eye, but fast enough to leave the realm of staring.

Sirius's arm came from nowhere and yanked her down. Blushing, she sat down next to him and did not make eye contact.

"Bysantine, Allen!"

A boy with oversized robes and tiny brown eyes perched on a huge forehead stumbled up to the hat. McGonagall dropped the hat on his head.

"SLYTHERIN!"

The boy rose, a glint in his eye, and plodded over to the Slytherin table, leaving the hat on the ground, where McGonagall promptly picked it up and looked at him reprovingly, to which he just gave her a wide smile, revealing crooked teeth. McGonagall looked appalled, and quickly looked down at the parchment, which was not quite as long anymore.

'_They do that scroll thing as a fashion statement or_ _whatnot'_ thought Cia as she caught a glimpse of the empty parchment. _'Figures.'_

"Catchlove, Greta!"

Pudgy, piggy eyes, large sincere smile-

Hat on,

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

Hat off,

"Cauvery, Allayna!"

That girl from the train, who when she went up to the hat, scanned the hall. Her eyes landed on Sirius. She smiled beatifically. Cia saw right through it.

Hat on,

Silence.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Hat off.

Cia looked down at her fork and picked it up, watching the reflections of people she had her back to as they skimmed the surface of the fork, oddly distorted and upside down.

She started trying to twirl the fork across her knuckles and failed miserably.

She set the fork down, and then picked it back up seconds later to see if it was still warm from her touch. Nope, cold as ice.

_Meanwhile…_

"Evans, Lily!"

McGonagall watched as a young girl with flaming hair and brilliant green eyes that sparkled with awe walked up to the hat, her freckled hands shaking. Minerva sat the hat on her head.

And almost immediately, the crooked rip from which the hat spoke opened wide.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

She allowed a mental smile to herself. Another one in the pack.

McGonagall read the next name off the list. The names were in inch high letters, and her eyebrow lifted in interest. This was the werewolf, no?

"Lupin, Remus!"

A boy with sandy, brownish blond hair and large amber eyes walked calmly up to her. He had scars that covered his face, and only his eyes betrayed his imminent fear.

Minerva allowed a small, encouraging smile to slip from her stern façade, making it visible only to him with the angle of her head. It wouldn't do to scare the poor werewolf, who was probably having kittens already about not fitting anywhere or having no friends or being discovered for what he really was. His eyes took on an encouraged glint. He sat down, and Minerva draped the hat over his head.

And she watched what was visible of his face, as it paled, a smile adorned it, the side of one of his lips quirking upwards, and into a full blown, joyful smile.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

He ripped the hat off his head and handed it to her, rushing to his new found family. He sat next to another first year, who gave him a friendly smile, spoke to him, her mouth moving with a smile, and then continued aimlessly playing with the silver fork that rested in her hand.

"Pettigrew, Peter!"

A snivelly looking, watery eye boy with fat in abundance waddled up to the stool. The hat was placed on his head.

It was quite a long sorting for one boy, but finally,

"GRYFFINDOR!"

He must have a courageous heart. After all, people are not always what they seem, McGonagall mused to herself, then called the next name.

"Potter, James!"

She had a good idea where he would go.

Sure enough, he was prancing off to the red and gold almost right away.

And the last name.

"Snape, Severus!"

A sallow skinned boy with straggly hair who had been looking longingly at Miss Evans came up to the stool, his robes dragging behind him. He had onyx eyes, which glinted just like the other Slytherin's had done.

The hat was soon on his head.

And the last sorting took the longest, and McGonagall watched as several conflicting emotions passed over his face and were then squashed mercilessly.

"SLYTHERIN!"

And the last first year placed the hat back on the stool with careful, pale, spindly fingertips and walked calmly away to the house he had just been sorted into.

**A/N: Really long, right? So review so I can achieve my goal of 1000 reviews! Tell me in a review what you would like improved, what scenes you would especially like to see, canon or not, and I promise I will take all of the reviews into account. **

**But please review, it makes my day and takes you like 30 seconds to a minute, but causes me endless happiness.**

**I also want to notify the readers of this fic that I am debating whether or not to write a oneshot about Remus and Sirius when they SPOILER FOR DH! die and see the other faithful Marauder in the afterlife thingy. It is a plot bunny that bit me hard one day, but I won't post it if ya'll don't want me to or you are undecided. So REVIEW, PPLS!**

**Dftba,**

**-Pheonix**


	5. Lily Evans

Chapter 5

Cia grumbled to herself as this unhelpful prefect stood aimlessly in front of a moving painting, talking to it quietly.

With a sigh, she resigned herself to the fact that magic was quite insane.

'_You have already established said fact, Cia'_ she reminded herself nicely.

Slamming the mental door to her stupid conscience with an imaginary slam (of course, she would have to get a replacement mental door to ward of stupid thoughts soon as this one NEVER WORKED), she turned her attention back to the prefect who finally said one loud word.

"Bravery!"

The door swung open.

'_Of all the sickeningly obvious passwords' _she noted as she comprehended that that word, bravery, indeed was the password as the door portrait thingy swung open-

"First Year dorms! Girls that way, boys that way!" he said, gesturing wildly to the stairwells on both sides of a large fireplace on which hung a banner that said 'One House to Rule Them All' in neon yellow and red.

Cia was about to go up the girls stairs when James barreled into her, Sirius in tow.

"Watch it!" She said, annoyed, but then plastered a smile to her face as they looked at her, surprised.

Sirius grinned back.

"Hey Cia, seeya tomorrow, alright?" James said brightly.

"Er. Sure, James." "Sirius." She added as an afterthought.

Sirius looked at her weird.

Then James hauled Sirius after him and up the staircases, and seconds later Cia heard a muffled: "MY BED!" and a crash.

The prefect, who had been slipping on a scarf, presumably to go outside, winced.

Cia dragged herself up the winding stairs and looked around for her suitcase.

Yup, there it was, in all its black and stitched up at the seams glory, with her kitten curled up on it.

Cia didn't fall asleep until two that night.

LCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCL

Cia's muffled groan could be heard from her fluffy, mutated pillow. A girl giggled. Sitting up on her hands awkwardly, Cia yawned, wincing as her neck cracked loudly, presumably as it had been out of place. Or something gross like that.

"Time?" she asked tiredly towards the source of the pointless giggling, after realizing that this was not t her home, therefore her alarm clock was not here.

"About seven." Answered a warm, light voice. "I was up at three. It's so exciting! I stayed up in the common room last night reading my books… I even tried a charm, and I couldn't do that at home because I am muggleborn, and it worked, and I just can't sit still, it's the first day of class, and it's so exciting! And I didn't even know magic even existed, you know, until-"

Cia interrupted the fiery redhead. Lily, her name was?

"My name is Cia. You are Lily, I think."

_Brilliant, Cia, brilliant. 'You think'. Lovely._

"Yes, Lily Evans. Have you-"

"When is breakfast?"

Lily was undeterred by the interruption.

"Eight, I think. But we can go down together, if you want. Are you a muggleborn, too?"

"Er, yes-"

The girl's eyes widened, a sparkle shimmering in their brilliant green depths.

"Oh, how _wonderful,_ I didn't know, see, because Brown is a pureblood family, but it can also be a muggle name. Evans, of course, anybody can tell my ancestry- I bet in class I won't know a thing, and then it will be so obvious! I…"

Cia tried her best to block out the sound of Lily's voice. It wasn't that she disliked Lily, but-

_Merlin, does that girl ever shut up?_ And then almost immediately after that _Be nice, Cia, to…Lily._

Yeah. That pretty much summed up her thoughts on Lily.

"Well, Cia, you still have to get dressed. And I want to get down early so I can have ample time to find my classroom, and talk to the teacher. I should probably also ask about extra credit- I am _positive_ everybody will know more than me, and I just can't let my grades get behind."

Lily stood up and grabbed a purple denim messenger bag with worn patches on it from a nearby bed.

"I think that the others are already awake- they might have fallen asleep in the common room, though. They stayed up later than me- I _only _forced myself to sleep by the fact that I needed rest to be energized."

Lily's glittering and sparkling eyes, full of vigor and joy, fell upon Cia, who hurriedly masked the exasperated expression that cloaked her face.

Too late. Lily had caught it.

_Cia, work on facial expressions. The girl will stay LONGER, now. _

Cia felt slightly guilty for wanting to get rid of Lily so quickly. She could understand where Lily was coming from, as she was a muggleborn too. She knew that when it had been proven to her that magic was real, she was ecstatic and could not be calmed for days.

_She'll get over the initial buzz in time. I can tell, though, that she will be a very very studious student. She can't not be, what with her display of knowledge that leaks out of her mouth at such a rapid rate._

Lily's face had a slightly hurt expression that she tried hard to hide, but failed miserably.

_She really isn't any good at hiding emotions…._ Cia's conscience said, frustrated,_ and it is making me feel guilty. It shouldn't, because it didn't make me feel guilty when I told my best friend that insult in kindergarten and she started crying…_

Cia vaguely remembered the insult she had shouted at Marie. Something along the lines of:

'To put it nicely, I hope you choke.'

Ah, she had been a handful even at that young age.

Cia slowly became aware that Lily was talking.

"…sorry, I am just so excited. I have only read about this sort of stuff, magic, you know, in books, and I used to imagine and wish that I could have it too. I almost cried about it, once, in primary school, because I thought that I would be really popular if I had magic…"

Lily's face turned an unflattering shade of pink that did not at all suit her hair. She had evidently let that memory out without meaning to.

"Anyway, I am sorry. I know I am a little bit, overexcited at times. Er, I'll try to be calmer."

Silence.

_Well, this is nice and awkward. How about you start a chorus of monks in the background, and a stage, too, while you're at it, so that you can feel even more stared at and awkward, say?_

"Er, I won't be as crazy and stupid in about a week, I swear." Lily emphasized.

_Is she waiting for me to talk?_

Silence again.

Lily looked defeated. The excitement that Cia had evidently drained from her seemed to make her hair less of a vibrant red and her eyes a duller green.

_This girl is so BAD! Your feels are breaking because of her. No, no, NO! For heaven's sake, Cia, pull yourself together, girl!_

Ignoring her conscience, Cia slowly pulled back her covers and stood up, her static hair starting to frizz out behind her in its early morning 'do.

"Lily" she called to the girl who was stepping out of the room down the cold stone staircase.

Lily turned around and stepped halfway back into the room.

"Hmm?"

"Er, would you mind waiting for me? If you don't mind, that is. We could walk together, if you want."

_Claire Brown, most eloquent girl on earth _remarked her mind sarcastically. _Any more 'if you don't mind's, or 'if you want's, and you could be a gentleman in the medieval era courting a lady. _

Lily's eyes brightened.

"Sure! I can lead you down there, so I can practice finding my way around this huge castle. And…"

Cia blocked her out again, but this time maintained a politely interested expression.

_Note to self: Never act on guilty impulses again _Cia thought as Lily resumed her kilometer a second talk, this time with wild hand gestures that almost brought off Cia's face.

**A/N: I posted the one-shot that I talked about last chapter! "The Next Great Adventure" – check my profile page if you want to read it.**

**And I have a new 'policy' or 'thing' about reviews. **

**If you leave a helpful review, I will add 100 words per reviewer to the next chapter. So if ten of you review… that is 1000 more words. So please review. Tell me what I can improve, or what you would like to see. Even though it is a bit early, I have also seen people ship Cia with somebody. You can do that too! Just Review, please. Make me happy.**

**Oh, and sorry about the delay. Excuses: 1. Laptop broke and had to be repaired (again) 2. Laptop deleted stuff 3. School is in my way. A lot. XD **

**Did you like Lily's character? I know she seems a trifle bit too energetic, but she will calm down. Tell me what you think I could improve with her. She is the hardest character to write, for me.**

**3s, -Pheonix**


	6. SuperGlue and Ugly Slugs

Chapter 6

Unfortunately, after Cia befriended Lily, she couldn't get Lily to leave her alone. Lily had suddenly become like that superglue that Cia's mom used. In other words, she was _stuck to her._

Cia was walking down a hallway, following McGonagall, their first hour Transfiguration professor.

Lily was walking next to Cia, babbling cheerfully.

"Our first class! I am so excited! It seemed like some kind of dream, you know, but now it is _finally _happening! And we're going to be early, so we can get all set up. We could probably even ask the teacher for some kind of, you know, _extra credit,_ since I _know _that I will be so far behind…. I am sure that I will do dreadfully, but, it is all to be expected, right?"

Lily was chewing the corner of her bottom lip, her sparkling emerald eyes portraying her nervousness.

"Cia? Do you know where Potions is being held? I want to go talk to my friend from home, and we have an _hour _before class starts, so…"

Cia turned to her. "Er, in the dungeons, I suppose."

Lily's eyes widened.

_Oh dear. She's going to want to gallivant down there now, too, dragging me along…"_

"Oh, would you mind coming with me? I heard _awful _stories about some of the Slytherins, and though I know Sev wouldn't do a thing, I am not so sure about the others... Besides, I am sure we will be early still to Transfiguration. Please, Cia?"

Cia really wanted to bash her head into a wall. Really, really badly.

"Er, Lily, we are first years, y'know. Even if some big, ugly Slytherin seventh year cornered us, is there _really _that much we could do about it? I mean, it's not like we know any spells…"

"Oh, I know a spell. _Rictumsempra._ I heard an older Gryffindor talking about it, she said it was _dreadful._ I practiced the wand movements, of course, but I didn't _dare_ try it on anybody. I think I've got it, though…"

"Fine." Cia hoped her reluctance didn't shine through her tone that much, but you never knew with her.

"Since you know some weird spell to ward off any ugly slug that comes our way, then I guess…"

Lily smiled at her.

_You are such a SOFTY, Cia, h_er mind informed her snidely.

The two girls ran down a nearby staircase, Cia albeit more slowly than the ever-on- a –sugar-rush Lily, and down a few hallways and more stairways, till they found themselves in a dark hallway illuminated only by a faint torch that sat in its brackets far down the hall.

Lily looked determined. "Down there somewhere is Sev. I know it! Come on!"

And Lily yanked Cia forcefully by the wrist down the hall. Ow.

_She certainly was NOT a hatstall at all…_ Cia thought as she was pulled along.

Suddenly Lily screamed, the sound piercing through the air.

Cia froze. _Seems like we ran into an ugly slug of a Slytherin student after all…_

A deep, bubbly voice boomed from in front of them.

"Oh, my, what do we have here!"

A light illuminated the corridor. Cia suddenly choked on her tongue as the light softened to reveal a broad figure of a man.

He was wearing a heavily stretched red velvet smoking jacket that barely was able to hold in the expanse of his stomach, and he had greying straw colored hair that sparsely covered his shiny round head. He had a thick, fine, stylized mustache, however, that was twitching as he laughed a bubbly laugh.

"Aha! Two students! Are you some of mine?"

He glanced down at their robes, and sighed.

"Ah well. You can't have everything, though, can you? Now, what are two first years doing around down here? It isn't the safest place for you."

"Please, sir, we were only-"

"Ah, I know." The teacher's eyes suddenly gave off a spectacular twinkle. "You were exploring. Well, I don't fault you! At your age, I hardly ever went to class! I was busy losing myself in the castle, and having a _spectacular time of it!_"

"Sir, if you don't mind us asking-" began Lily, whose eyes had suddenly shone with recognition.

"Where you are? Of course not! Now, listen care"

Lily leaned over to Cia.

"He's the Slytherin Head of House. Professor Slughorn. He also teaches Potions for most years."

Cia choked on her tongue. Again. _He really is an ugly 'slug'._

She bit her tongue to keep from an explosion of rude and barking laughter.

Slughorn's voice came back into focus as Lily stood to attention again.

"Alright then? Okay. Now, off you go, wouldn't want you late to your next class. You have about forty-five minutes. That's ample time to get to your class, and get set up."

'Maybe you'll even get to introduce yourself to the teacher!"

"I'll see you- hmm, Gryffindors- later this week, Thursday, in Potions!"

Beaming at the two of them, he walked-_waddled_, Cia's brain informed her rudely- off, leaving Lily and Cia alone in the dark hallway.

Lily stared after the retreating wandlight.

"I am _not _looking forward to his class, Cia. At all."

"Well, Lily, I agree. He seems, rather," Cia's voice died off in the dark hallway, and the two of them stood there for a moment, contemplating the professor.

"Should we still look for your friend, er, Sev?"

Lily's voice was distant as she replied.

"I don't think we should. We might… be late." Her voice cleared. "And, I think that introducing ourselves to McGonagall would be a _spectacular _idea."

Silence.

"Cia?"

Lily. Again.

"He can't be _that _bad, right?"

Silence.

Cia took on her cheerfully sarcastic voice and started clomping up some stairs that stood near them.

"No, no NO! Of course not! He probably was _just_ excited for his first class of the year. I know I would be. New, fresh students that know absolutely _nothing _and will explode everything in sight, and empty brains to fill to the brim and explode!"

Lily looked marginally more cheerful, and grinned at Cia as they trudged up the next corridor.

"Thanks, Cia."

She looked truly grateful, and her emerald eyes looked at Cia with unrequited happiness.

_What is it with her and making me feel guilty?_

Some people, Cia decided, have no idea what sarcasm is. Or how to handle it.

She gave a resigned sigh as Lily's mouth took on full speed ahead. Again.

_Goodbye, Sanity._

**A/N: This was a hard chapter for me to write! But here it is! *displays chapter proudly* Thank you to all my reviewers! And sorry, I was skiing last week, no internet access. SOB! But I wrote a few more chapters to my stories. To make you happy. So make me happy by reviewing, non?**

**What did you think of it? **

**Drop a review and tell me about it! (And if you drop a review, you get a PM from me and the next chappie has a hundred more words) (per reviewer)**

**AND, if you don't have anything else to do, how about go check out my other stories!**

**I have a sequel I am writing to Harry Potter starring Albus Severus, a couple of one-shots, a story that a bunch of wonderful people like that is about the Marauders travelling to Harry's third year at Hogwarts. And you should also check out Moony1972's stories. They. Are. So. Cool. And Moony1972 has a bunch of them. They make me laugh a lot…**

**Have a great day, night, whatever. Do you even read this far?**

**I am really hyper… (Random Fact)**

**Pheonix.**


	7. Lament of the Half Blood Prince

Chapter 7

Hogwarts was a place of beauty that morning, with its tall, tapering towers reaching to a pale pink sky, glinting, sunny windows letting the light fall in. It was also very quiet in the morning, as most students were sleeping peacefully, oblivious to the fact that the sun had just burst over the horizon and officially signaled the start of another school day.

But, if you were James Potter, and you had long and wiry limbs that made you quite prone to injury, you were awake the second that the unfortunate victim of your arms (nightdresser) slams to the ground, jolting you awake and out of bed in shock.

And then, of course, a fine specimen of the domino effect, as your crash was not entirely soundless…

Sirius Black woke because of an unfortunately loud crash that resounded through the dorms with eerie finality, marking the end of the fall and descent of one terribly unfortunate nightdresser. It also marked the end of slumber for the boys in that room.

Shooting up with a yell (manly yell, of course), Sirius jumped out of bed.

"BLOODY _HELL,_ what _was _that?" A yell emanated from his mouth, yet another asset in waking up the entire Gryffindor House.

His wide, startled grey eyes landed on the wiry form of one James Potter, who was doubling over in barely contained laughter.

"…" Sirius was not amused, to say the least.

"My my, Black, aren't you eloquent today?"

"I- who said- what was- Potter, what is _wrong _with you? Have you no shame? This is an _ungodly _hour to be making such raucous, unsettling sounds!"

Sirius flounced dramatically back onto his back and shut his eyes tightly. "Leave me alone, you absolute…"

Pause.

"You absolute _ponce."_

With a satisfied smirk on his face, Sirius proceeded to draw the thick, plush, neon yellow and scarlet covers over his head.

"Real mature, Black."

"Go away, _ponce_" came the muffled reply.

James Potter's eyes fell into a roll.

Neither boy noticed Remus Lupin still clutching his ears in the lower bunk on the other side of the room.

LCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLC

Severus Snape glanced down at the potions book.

_-Add six snake fangs to the mortar_

Severus palmed his face as he watched a chubby girl next to him add them to her _cauldron_, and feebly stir them _counterclockwise._

It was all _in_ the book. In neat, square print, it was _right there._

Severus glanced down at the small piece of parchment next to his book. It was a hand-drawn list of ingredients and how they worked together.

There, in his spindly, spidery script, so like his mother's:

_Stirring a potion the wrong way will result in volatility. Rarely is it advisable to stir the opposite way as instructed, however, in some cases it can strengthen the potency of the potion. DO NOT attempt without a deep understanding of the potion and its ingredients - most stirring that is not included in instruction is _not _advisable and will result in explosion or in some potions fatality. Be extremely cautious._

Severus gave a large sigh and glanced over at the girl's cauldron, which was now a bubbly blackish blob.

Turning back around and arching an eyebrow at the teacher in the girl's direction, he stepped onto his chair and perched exasperatedly on the back, letting his robes pool around him.

Slughorn quirked an eyebrow at Severus, who merely nodded at the girl, who was now frantically looking from the book to the cauldron and back again, shaking her hands furiously.

The professor ambled over to her, and glanced into her cauldron.

And it exploded.

LCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLC

Lily Evans twirled her fingers through her thick, auburn hair and watched it slide off, shiny in the light that shone in rivulets through the large, dusty window on the side of the room.

"Transfiguration is extremely capricious. _Anything_ can happen if you do not have enough concentration or intent. _Intent._"

"Now, I need to stress something to all of you. _Transfiguration can _kill_ you_."

There was silence. Lily's eyes widened, and she grabbed her quill from next to her, jabbing it into the jar of ink near her and started scrawling against the piece of parchment that lay on her desk.

_Transfiguration_

_can_

_kill_

_you._

Cia glanced at Lily, who was taking attentive notes.

Wow. Transfiguration can kill you. _What a school. I mean, they actually tell you if something can kill you. In schools at home, they don't warn you. They are just like: "Welcome to Pre-Algebra." They don't warn you that math will actually slowly kill you after time, they just-_

"Miss Brown!"

Cia tried to dull her jump.

"Yes, Professor?"

"Pay attention! Now-

One of the first rules of transfiguration is that nothing will remain transfigured. Now, say if you transfigured a desk into a chocolate bar. If you ate the chocolate bar, you would only have so much time before what would happen, Miss Brown?"

"Er, it would… turn back into a desk?"

"I asked for an answer, Miss Brown, not a question. Miss Evans?"

"It would turn back into a desk because one of the first rules of transfiguration is that nothing will remain transfigured."

"Correct, Miss Evans, thank _you_ for listening. A point to Gryffindor."

Lily beamed. She had earned the first point of her class.

Cia sighed and started drawing a face in the corner of her parchment.

McGonagall glanced at the girl sitting next to Miss Evans. The girl seemed to be drawing something.

"Miss Brown!"

The girl looked at her.

"Two points from Gryffindor. I expect you to pay attention when I am speaking!"

Cia flushed crimson.

Lily looked at Cia, her eyes filling with tears that she hastily wiped away. With a fierce, tearful glare, she scooted further away from Cia.

Cia looked at her.

"Sorry, Lily."

"Stop!" Lily whispered, her eyes shimmering and angry. "You'll lose us even more points!"

Cia winced, and looked back at McGonagall, who was busy continuing the lecture on transfigured items. _Alright then, just don't cry all over me._

LCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLC

On the other side of the room, James Potter was staring at Lily.

"Bloody Hell, she's _crying._"

Sirius, who was sitting next to him, snickered.

"No, no, did you _see_ how red Brown turned? She was like a cherry Bertie Botts."

James laughed appreciatively, and grabbed a spare piece of parchment from his bag. Yanking the quill out of the ink jar which sat near his index finger, he scrawled a quick note.

_I wouldn't cry if I lost two house points. Besides, if we plan on carrying through with our prank, we have to be prepared for points in the negatives._

Sirius grinned as he read James's note, and nabbed James's quill from his hand.

_And we have to be impervious to all the crying and blushing girls._

_And prepare to be unpopular, Black._

_Duly noted. But I'm sure we'll regain much popularity over time._

With a snort, James grinned at Sirius.

Sirius turned back to the teacher.

James stuffed the parchment back in his bag, and resumed watching Evans. She was a fascinating species.

**A/N: Review. Review. Review. And if you review, the next chapter has a hundred more words per reviewer.**


	8. Charmed, I'm Sure

Chapter Eight

The Great Hall the next morning was a crowd of chaos. Students were talking, laughing, giggling, and other such things, and more students( and the occasional faculty member) would come flooding through the doors, heading towards their seats, or, in some cases, heading towards their friends in other houses, or just gathering in a corner with friends and forming a large, exclusive circle.

One of the students visiting their friend was a girl with long, thick auburn hair and brilliant emerald eyes which were, at the moment, narrowed at a girl with long, blonde hair who sat at the table.

The corner in which the two were visiting was cloaked in shadow, and though the girl, giving from her posture, did not look too comfortable with it, the boy who stood next to her melted into them with an easy grace.

"It's just, Sev, I _thought_ she would understand my eagerness to learn. You know, because she is a muggleborn too! But I think that she is more interested in the practical work- and she daydreams and she will lose us so many points! I thought that we could be study buddies, and, you know, work together, but she was just doodling in the corner of her parchment, and – even after she had been _warned, _Sev, and then she lost the point, and another, that I had just earned! She had- she had been warned! I just don't understand why-"

"Lily, you did say that she had answered the question correctly, though?"

"Well, she _phrased_ it correctly, but I guess her tone wasn't right, she phrased it as a question. Oh, I don't know, I guess she didn't phrase it right but got the answer, because what she said was right."

"Then she must have been listening, even though it appeared that she was daydreaming. She does probably share your eagerness to learn, Lily, she just doesn't have your vigor. And besides, in a few years, your achievement will earn you more than one point. Some of the third years, even, earn _ten _points for answering a question. That's what my mother said, you know, and she also said that the more advanced your spellwork is, the more points-"

A new voice had entered their midst.

"Why, what have we here, Snape? Are you talking to your little mudblood girlfriend? In a corner in the shadows? Why _Sevsy,_ how sweet to talk to your muddy little-"

"_Don't call her that."_

"What? Your girlfriend, or a mudblood? Because, Snape, both are-"

"Shut_ UP!"_

Sev….erus, what is-" Lily's face looked slightly scared and very confused.

"Little Mudblood, that's what she is-"

_CRACK_

Snape's open palm whipped across the older Slytherin's face. "Shut the hell up, or so help me I will pound you _into_ the ground, you moronic excuse for a human."

The boy's voice came again, this time with a dangerous undertone.

"You're such a-_muggle,_ Snape."

And with one last look of loathing, he clutched his cheek and walked back to the Slytherin table.

"S-sev?"

LCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLCLC

"My dad is going to _kill _me, Black. Can't we go back to what we had planned _before _you raided my luggage?"

Sirius's face grew mischievous.

"Why of course, Jamesykins, if you want me to announce to the Great Hall that you proudly sport baby griffin underpants."

James let out a guttural growl. "If you even _mention that to a single living soul, Black…"_

But he did not broach the topic of going back to Plan A again.

The two boys entered the Great Hall, and Sirius hid the large packet of small, brown items inside his robes.

When the noises of the Hall had settled down a bit as students started sitting down and eating, Sirius slid the packet out of his robes, and, gently peeling it open, extracted a small, round brown sphere. He then proceeded to slyly drop it in a pudding a few feet away from him. He then repeated the action, but placed the spheres in other places. A student's bag, a student's shoe, James's pocket (he had to refrain from snorting as James just continued to stare across the table at a brunette with blue eyes) and he managed to slip the last few in a few Slytherin's robes as they entered the hall.

When he returned to his House table, he proceeded to stuff himself as quickly as possible, carefully avoiding the Pudding of Dung.

It all happened simultaneously. Sirius dropped his fork, and then the Gryffindor table heard a small explosion as the pudding and several students were enveloped in a cloud of brown smog.

Choking was heard all around the hall, as students everywhere were trying unsuccessfully to get the noxious fumes out of their lungs.

Nobody noticed the owls swooping down from above the Hall and dropping parcels frantically, but the shrieking increased as bombs of mail dropped from above.

The smog was spreading, and most of the Gryffindor table was covered, along with the Slytherin table. A few Ravenclaws had seemingly been targeted, also. The Hufflepuffs looked confused and bewildered, and some were laughing so hard that tears were streaming from their eyes.

The screaming was broken by a shrill voice.

"_SIRIUS ORION BLACK! I AM UTTERLY ASHAMED OF YOU! WHEN YOU GET BACK IN THE HOLIDAYS, DO NOT EXPECT ME TO BE LENIENT! REGULUS IS ALSO ASHAMED OF YOU! HE LOOKED UP TO YOU, AND NOW WHAT DO YOU DO? YOU DRAG HIS HOPES IN THE DIRT! YOU CAN NO LONGER BE TRULY A BLACK IF YOU GALLAVANT WITH BLOOD-TRAITORS AND THE FILTH THAT SHROUDS THE GRYFFINDOR HOUSE!"_

Silence laminated the Great Hall as they all tried vainly to clear the stinging, stinking fog from their eyes and locate 'Sirius Orion Black.' Needless to say, it was in vain.

The silence was broken by a voice, sounding slightly amused and not in the least embarrassed.

"Well, James, _that_ was my mum. Congratulations, you now must have perforated eardrums."

**A/N: Review, read my other stories, and each review adds a hundred more words per reviewer to the next chapter.**

**Questions you can answer in reviews if you would like**

**Did you like Snape's biting tongue? Was he in character?**

**Was my personification of Walburga okay?**

**What characters would you like to see more of? (don't worry, Pettigrew and Remus will come in soon)**

**Any pairings you would like? I will take them into consideration, but I don't guarantee that they will be THE pairings. And there won't be much pairing in first year. Just saying.**

**What can I improve in my writing? Please don't say length- reviews get length. So just review.**

**Do you like this story?**

**Thanks!  
Pheonix**


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